What It Means to Be "Strong"

- Dagmar Sullivan -

The 2010 theme of the Status of
Women is
"Strong Women,
Strong Canada, Strong World." The theme for 2009 was "Strong
Leadership, Strong Women, Strong World: Equality" and in 2008 it was
"Strong Women, Strong World." Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status
of Women) has recently gone across
Canada presenting the theme: "Strong Women Mean a Strong Canada."

What is this government's problem? What does it mean by
strong? Does it think that if it relegates enough women to stay at home
and home school their children but promotes the "best and the
brightest" to be No. 1 "on the market place," Canadian women will
forget all about their rights and become
desperate chauvinists and warmongers and call themselves "strong"?
"Strong" about what? Today's "strong" Canada is the one which hands
the wealth produced by the workers over to foreign and domestic
monopolies, slashes and privatizes public services, sells off the
nation's assets, and attacks the wages, working
conditions and pensions of the pubic sector and private sector workers.
It is a Canada of aggression and occupation, a Canada in which "Might
Makes Right." This so-called strong Canada has failed to stop the take
over of our manufacturing and resource sectors by foreign monopolies.
It
has no strength to resist the
U.S. demands to embroil Canada in its acts of aggression and empire
building. It is a Canada which has not had the strength to uphold
international laws on torture and the UN Charter on the non-use of
force to settle differences between nations but has the strength to
persecute those who oppose the war. A Canada
which does not have the strength to protect workers from plant
closures,
wage cuts and concessions but which has the strength to arrest striking
workers and legislate them back to work -- this Canada is strong for
whom? A Canada which does not have the strength to protect the over 500
mainly Aboriginal disappeared
women or provide affordable, universal daycare but has the strength to
close women's advocacy offices and reduce transfer payments, resulting
in the wrecking of social services such as daycare, public housing, and
health care -- this Canada is strong for whom? It is a Canada with a
strong privileged
elite which holds all the power
and dictates compliance from its citizenry by doing everything in the
corridors of power and boardrooms of thieves of various descriptions
parading as successful businessmen and leaders.

Women have long since rejected the arrangement
of a
strong authority figure at the head of a compliant, submissive
membership. Women have equally rejected being "strong" women taking up
the agenda of nation wrecking and war. Women have long since upheld the
fighting traditions that our strength
lies in our numbers, our unity and our collective fight for our rights
and the rights of all. It is by establishing the necessary mechanisms
that enable everyone to have a voice and take part in the planning,
decision making and implementation of these decisions to build a
People's Canada that women show their strength
and creativity. A strong Canada can only be where the workers and their
allies have the political power to change the direction of the economy
to serve the needs of the people at home and abroad and provide their
rights with a guarantee. It is only when political power is in the
hands of the workers and their allies
that the country will have the will and the strength to uphold the
sovereignty of all nations, trade on the basis of mutual benefit and
oppose the use of force to settle differences between nations. It is
this fight which women have taken up and it is the successes gained in
nation building which show their true strength.

All Out for Democratic Renewal!
All Out
for a People's Canada!
All Out to Establish an Anti-War Government!

Urgent Need to Strengthen Public Enterprise to Protect
Women Who Are Victims of Violence

- Peggy Morton -

The cynical and
hypocritical claim that grants
are being provided to empower women and develop their leadership skills
is the polar opposite of women's real experience.

When Canadians hear about the government
"bringing down
a budget," the impression given is that this is a process in which
funds are allocated to definite programs which are then approved by
Parliament. In fact many programs are delivered through a process of
discretionary spending in which the
party in power can make the decisions about who gets funding and who
does not, a process which is corrupt to the core and a means of
exercising control and dictate.

Such is the case when it comes to violence against
women. More than 101,000 women and children were admitted in shelters
in 2008. On a typical day, over 7,000 women and women and children are
residing in shelters. About three-quarters of women in shelters are
fleeing an abusive situation, and
for two-thirds of these women, the abuser was their common-law partner
or spouse.

In 2008 there were 569 shelters providing residential
services to women and children fleeing abusive situations in Canada,
according to the 2008/2009 Transition Home Survey (THS) -- a biennial
census of all residential facilities for female victims of domestic
violence. There is a need for both emergency
housing and for transitional housing.

The fact that women are in need of transitional housing
reflects the lack of social housing in Canada and the refusal of
governments to provide the right to housing with a guarantee. Women are
particularly affected, as the average earnings of women remain at about
70 percent of average earnings of
men. Women make up a disproportionate share of the population in Canada
with low incomes, and women who are lone parents or single are
especially likely to have low incomes and to live in poverty. Clearly
this is not a problem created by women and is not of their making.

This social program required by more than 100,000 women
and children in any given year is not however established as a social
program based on the recognition of the right of women to safe and
affordable housing for themselves and their children. There is no
stable funding source, and it is left mainly
to women themselves to organize and provide for it. Canada's shelters
for
abused women reported annual revenues of about $333 million in 2005-06.
Most of the shelter revenue (about 80 percent) comes from federal,
provincial and municipal governments, with the federal government
contributing only about 10 percent
of total revenues. The balance comes from fund-raising in the community.

The Shelter Enhancement Program (SEP) administered by
the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) provides financial
assistance to non-profit organizations in the form of forgivable loans
for construction of new shelters and repair of existing shelters. CMHC
is the largest Canadian Crown
Corporation in terms of assets with some $26 billion in holdings as of
2008-2009. It is the second largest Crown Corporation after Canada Post
in terms of revenue with some $4.6 billion in 2004. This funding does
not begin to cover the costs of building a shelter. For example the
most that the program would contribute
for a shelter to house 10 women and children is less than the cost of
one modest single-family home. This paltry funding is used as an
opportunity for the ministers responsible to travel the country making
announcements, cutting ribbons and even producing phony cheques for
photo-ops which make it look like the
money is coming from the member of parliament or the Conservative Party.

Status of Women (SWC), does not actually provide any
programs. It provides grants to non-governmental organizations "to
advance equality for women" and is also responsible to work with
federal departments and agencies to ensure that the gender dimensions
are taken into account in the development
of policies and programs. There is no evidence that it actually
conducts any research and if it does, the results are not published. It
appears therefore that its main work is to receive and approve or deny
grant applications. Of a total budget of about $33 million last year,
about $22 million went to approved projects
and $11 million for SWC administrative costs. That is, for every dollar
SWC provides in funding to projects, it spends 50 cents to do so. This
does not even include the expense of the Minister travelling the
country, not to mention the cost of doing damage control when she does.
Recently Helena Guergis, the Minister
responsible for Status of Women, was forced to apologize about her
abusive conduct towards Air Canada and airport staff in Charlottetown.

Who benefits from this
manner of allocating funding for
necessary social programs such as emergency shelters and transition
housing for women and their children who face violence in their homes?
Clearly it does not benefit women who are in need of emergency and
transition housing. Women are
turned away from shelters on a regular basis in Canada because they are
full. In many parts of the country they are not even available or they
are unsustainably understaffed. The federal government accepts no
responsibility to make sure that such a necessary social program is
available where needed and does not
recognize the right of women to be safe from violence. The NGOs that
establish and run shelters and other programs dealing with violence
against women are forced to deploy limited resources in an endless
round of grant applications and fund-raising activities in the
community. Funding is dependent both on the
party in power and the monopolies who make their tax-deductible
contributions from time to time as it suits them. Inadequate funding
also affects the right of the staff working in shelters for
Canadian-standard living and working conditions.

But for the party in power,
it is a means to exercise
control, its own version of "Own the Podium." Anyone who wants to be on
that podium with the minister when the funding announcement is made
better think twice about taking a stand in defence of rights or in any
way appearing to be critical of
the government. The cynical and hypocritical claim that grants are
being provided to empower women and develop their leadership skills is
the polar opposite of women's real experience. This message is even
delivered bluntly to women's collectives who exercise freedom of
conscience -- 'don't bite the hand that
feeds you' or suffer the consequences. In this way the party in power
considers the portion of the added value created by the working class
which is claimed by governments for social programs to be its own
preserve, an outlook stinking with corruption and patronage.

Women must fight for new arrangements which include
increased investments to provide all the social programs which women
and children need. It is entirely wrong for governments to not
accept responsibility to ensure even the most basic requirement of
women and children for safe shelter.
This is not a woman's problem, but a problem of society and should be
provided as a basic social program fully funded by governments and not
left at the mercy of the party in power. Far from upholding the rights
of all people by virtue of being human, and the rights which belong to
women as women and provide
them with a guarantee, this government is in contempt of what it means
to be social and what it means to be human. It must be defeated!

Harper Government's Arrogant Denial of Responsibility
for the Problem of Women's Impoverishment

- Elaine Couto -

On February 9 the Harper government submitted
a 39-page
response to the UN committee responsible for implementing the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women (CEDAW). In 2008 this UN committee considered Canada's failure to
comply with its commitments
under this Convention so serious that it asked for an update report
after one year rather than the usual four. Urgent action was called for
with respect to women's impoverishment and the inadequacy of social
assistance programs. The committee recommended that minimum standards
be established across Canada
along with a mechanism to ensure that funds for these programs "meet
the needs of the most vulnerable groups of women and do not result in
discrimination against women."

The federal government has not reported any
progress in
implementing the CEDAW recommendations. It has completely dismissed the
essence of the recommendation -- that it deal with the serious problem
facing women and the society. It instead provided "information" "under
the follow-up
procedure" in the form of a lecture on the federal-provincial breakdown
of powers in Canada and the province's monitoring mechanisms on their
social assistance programs. Basically it told the committee that the
well-being of half the population was not its problem and that it has
no plan to act.

"Canada's failure to fulfill the social and economic
rights of the most disadvantaged groups of women is a direct cause of
violations of their rights to security of the person and to life," the
Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) states in
its report issued concurrently with that
of the federal government, No Action No Progress. FAFIAhas
criticized
the
government's
inaction
in
addressing
these
issues. Cuts
to social assistance and the drastic decline in social assistance rates
have disproportionately affected women and social assistance rates in
all provinces have
drastically declined since the federal government appealed the Canada
Assistance Plan Act in 1995 and removed conditions from the transfer
payments made by Ottawa to the provinces.

FAFIA points out that the CEDAW committee is not alone
in its concern about women's impoverishment in Canada. Virtually every
UN body that reviews Canada's human rights performance, including the
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Human Rights
Committee
and the Human Rights Council has expressed concerns.

FAFIA's report calls on the Government of Canada to
immediately establish a federal and pan-Canadian strategy for
eliminating poverty; that includes a transparent monitoring mechanismand an impact assessment of social programs.

Canadian women must lead in building an opposition to a
government, which can so contemptuously dismiss its responsibility to
address matters of such grave import. Let us build an opposition of
worker politicians which will take a stand in setting the direction of
the economy and meeting the
needs of the Canadian people.

Workers Need a National Child Care Program!

- Christine Nugent -

Four years ago the Harper
Government introduced its
Universal Child Care Benefit -- a hundred dollar monthly payment to
parents for each child under six years old with the stated goal of
helping Canadians "balance work and family by supporting their child
care choices." To date, between $7 and $8
billion of the workers' money has been expended on the program, with
absolutely zero results in terms of building the social infrastructure
needed to raise the next generation of youth.

There have been no results either in increasing the
availability of child care to working families and in particular to the
working poor. In fact the number of subsidized spaces is being reduced
as the Universal Child Care Benefit has reduced overall funding
received by the provinces for social
programs. Expansion of child care has slowed, with spaces available for
only 20 percent of three to five year olds and that only if parents can
afford the fees which range from $600-$1,200 a month. Modest and
low-income families, Aboriginal and rural families, parents of infants
and children with disabilities
are especially excluded.

When the Ontario government
announced recently that they
were going to implement all day kindergarten for 4 and 5 year olds it
appeared at first that this would assist low-income families. However,
the announcement came with the proviso that there will be no
renovations or building at the
schools that will house the programs. This means that women in many
impoverished Toronto neighborhoods with overflowing schools are denied
access to the all day programs.

Meanwhile the just demand of Canadian women and workers
for a national child care program gets reduced by the cartel parties
into partisan bickering as they position themselves to get the "women's
vote." Liberal Party leader, Michael Ignatieff claims he will make it
the number one social
priority of a Liberal government, conveniently side-stepping the
uncomfortable truth that it has been part of the Liberal platform for
thirty years and that after Chrétien's 1993 victory he set aside
the sections of the Liberal Red Book that dealt with a national
child-care program in order to "tackle the deficit." Finally, when the
Martin Liberals put forward a national child care
program in an attempt to stave off defeat in a minority government,
they were defeated with the help of the NDP. As a result the country is
now saddled with the Harperite anti-social offensive which is markedly
anti-women to boot.

Looming in the background of all of this is the drive
for private daycare being championed by none other than John Snobelen,
the former Minister of Education in the 1990s Harris government in
Ontario. He sits on the board of Edleun Inc., a new company soon to be
listed on the TSX Venture
Exchange that is looking to develop big-box child care in Canada.
Snobelen's statement in a February 22 column of the Toronto Sun that
"We can't afford all-day JK/SK" echoes the neo-liberal mantra, "We
cannot afford social programs," but can afford to wreck the social
infrastructure through privatization and
pay the rich schemes.

At the time governments at both the federal and
provincial levels are preparing to make further cuts to social programs
in the name of fighting the deficit, women and the entire working class
demand a national child care program which ensures the well-being of
the children and creates the
conditions for women to participate fully in the social and economic
life of their society. All of it underscores the necessity for women
to put themselves in leading positions in society so that no matter
what, the basic rights of women and children including a national child
care program, are provided with a
guarantee.

Stop Paying the Rich -- Increase Funding
for Social Programs!

Haiti

Women Honour Leaders Who Died in the Earthquake

Dominican Republic,
January 27, 2010: The International Feminist Solidarity Camp Myriam
Merlet,
Anne Marie Coriolan, and Magalie Marcelin (pictured in the background)
is established in honour of Haitian women leaders killed in the
earthquake.(Photo:
International Women's Health Coalition)

On January 27, two weeks after the devastating
earthquake in Haiti, Latin American and Caribbean women activists
established the International Feminist Solidarity Camp Myriam Merlet,
Anne Marie Coriolan, and Magalie Marcelin in the Dominican Republic.
The camp was named after three women rights
activists who died in the earthquake. The camp was set up as a physical
and digital hub to provide ongoing assistance to Haitian women's
organizations in the work of rebuilding their country, to ensure
alternative media coverage of the situation in Haiti and to monitor the
work of international aid agencies to
ensure they pay attention to the specific needs of women and young
girls.

On February 17 the International Feminist Solidarity
Camp called on women around the world to include activities honouring
the Haitian women activists as part of their International Women's Day
activities. This initiative emerged from a women's meeting on January
24 in Port au Prince, and
was then adopted at a meeting of the International Feminist Solidarity
Camp Myriam Merlet, Magalie Marcelin and Anne Marie Coriolan, held in
the Dominican Republic from January 26-27.

In their call they say "We are calling organizations
throughout the world to join us that day to honour and mourn our loss
of feminist activists which will allow us to revive and recreate
momentum of the Haitian women's movement to continue the important work
of our fallen leaders and the
legacy they have left for those of us who continue the work"

"The main activity will take place that day in Plaza
Catherine Flon in Champ de Mars in the centre of Port au Prince, a park
that symbolizes Haitian women's participation to the war towards
independence two centuries ago," they say.

"It is being organized by the Haitian women's
organizations locally to acknowledge and honour the human suffering of
the catastrophe in Haiti, promote feminist values based on the human
rights of all, the struggle for well being of all in Haiti and urban
planning, reaffirm feminist struggles
despite the loss of significant feminist leaders, strengthen solidarity
and display a MEMORIA which will take the form of testimonies, a mural
and a slide show."

In the communique announcing the event they explain the
significance of the location for the main commemoration. "Catherine
Flon is widely regarded by Haitians as one of the heroes of the
struggle to put an end to slavery, as she sewed the first Haitian flag
on May 18, 1803 on the last day of
the colonial congress session where leaders of the revolution at that
session solemnly swore an oath to liberty or death on the flag which
then led the slaves to victory and freedom. This oath is known
historically as the Oath of the Ancestors."

On the activities of the three feminist leaders being
memorialized, the communique says:

"All three leaders had a long standing trajectory in
feminist activism reforming a judiciary that never took rape seriously,
creating organizations and houses to protect girls and women against
domestic violence and trafficking, publishing a feminist newspaper,
expanding a documentary centre and
an historical archive, and struggling for the protection of sexual and
reproductive rights.

"Merlet was a feminist activist, and an advisor and
former chief-of-staff for the Haitian Minister of Women. As an
outspoken activist, Merlet helped draw international attention to the
use of rape as a political weapon, and other issues related to violence
against women and girls. She was one of the
founders of Enfofanm, the first feminist information and documentation
centre that also promotes women's rights.

"Magalie Marcelin was a lawyer, activist and actress,
who two years ago urged women to pack a courtroom in Haiti, where she
succeeded in getting a guilty verdict against a man who battered his
wife. Marcelin was a founder of Kay Fanm, a women's rights organization
that deals with domestic
violence, offers services and shelter to women and provides
microcredit, or small loans, to women working in markets.

"Anne Marie Coriolan served as a top advisor to the
women's ministry. Assisted by their efforts, the ministry developed key
initiatives to raise awareness of violence against women and created
programs to help women gain financial independence. Coriolan was also
the founder of Solidarite Fanm
Ayisyen (Solidarity with Haitian Women, or SOFA), an advocacy and
services organization."

Local activities in other countries for March 8 have
already been announced by women's organizations in Chile, Argentina,
Honduras, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Canada, and elsewhere. A special
roundtable is being organized to honour these three feminist leaders,
among others killed in the quake at the
United Nations Headquarters in New York during the Commission on the
Status of Women session.

Calendar
of
Events

All Out for International Women's Day 2010!

PRINCE
EDWARD
ISLAND Charlottetown Celebration Saturday, March 6 -- 7:30
pm
The Guild, 115 Richmond Street
Music by Ruth Mathiang, an exciting and fun game of Trivia with a
feminist twist,
prizes and food, cash bar Organized by the
International Women's Day Committee, which includes
Cooper Institute, Women's Network PEI, the Advisory Council on the
Status of Women, CUSO-VSO, PEI Federation of Labour, the
Inter-Ministerial Women's Secretariat and the PEI Rape and Sexual
Assault Centre and the
support of the Atlantic Council for International Cooperation Contact: Cooper
Institute, 894-4573 / cooperinstitute@eastlink.ca

NOVA
SCOTIA
Dartmouth "Empowering Women
- The
Journey Forward" Monday, March 8 -- 9:00
am-4:00 pm
Holiday Inn Harbourview, 101 Wyse Road
A celebration for all women working in or retired from Federal
Government Departments and Agencies, Crown Corporations, Military or
Public Service Alliance of Canada. Organized by women
volunteers from the federal Public Service and the
Public Service Alliance of Canada. Contact: http://www.iwd-halifax.com

NEW BRUNSWICKFrederictonInternational Women’s Day Potluck
Sunday, March 7 -- 12:00 noon-3:00 pmRenaissance
College
at
811
Charlotte
St.
in
Fredericton
With updates from different groups in the city working on women’s
issues beginning at 1:00 pm.
All are welcome.

Following the March:Rally for
Steelworker
Locals 6500 and 6200 on Strike at
Vale Inco in
Sudbury, Port Colborne and Voisey's Bay Saturday, March 6
--
3:00 pm
Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Front St.
(between John and Simcoe) All welcome. 2:15 pm: bus leaves
Steelworkers' Hall, 25 Cecil St. 2:15 pm: buses
leave Ryerson, 55 Gould Street --
at the end of the Women's Day March. 4:30 pm till late:
BBQ social for the strikers back at 25 Cecil St.,
after the downtown action is over. Organized by Toronto Area
Steelworkers Any questions? Call John
Humphrey: 416-727-8583

The Power of Us: A
Celebration of WomenMonday, March 8 --
7:00-9:00 pm
Women's College Hospital, 76 Grenville Street
A evening with youth activist Jessica Yee and celebrated Canadian
artist d'bi young.
Tickets: $17.50 through UofTtixOrganized by Women's
College Hospital Contact: 416-978-8849 or
uofttix.ca

Newmarket Reflect, Acknowledge and
Take Action Monday, March 8 -- 11:00 am-5:00
pm
Upper Canada Mall located at 17600 Yonge Street
An event to look at what needs to be done & to educate the public
on Violence Against Women
and services available in York Region. Organized by: York Region
Violence Against Women Coordinating Committee Etobicoke Potluck and Get
Together Monday, March 8 --
6:30 pm
William Punnett Co-op Common Room, 3077 Lakeshore Blvd. West
Organized by Lakeshore Women's Action Group
Contact: 416- 255 -1874, 416-503-1170

Hamilton 2nd Annual
Multicultural
Women's Social Conference Saturday, March 6 --
10:00 am -
3:00 pm
123 King St. West Ontario Organized by When Sistahs
Get Together (WSGT): Contact: www.whensistahsgettogether.com

Public Talk: Women
and Hope Around the WorldMonday, March 8 --
7:00-9:00 pm
Council Chambers, GH 111
With Deborah Ellis, award winning author and
recipient of the Governor General’s Literary Award

Public Talk:
Between Orientalism and Fundamentalism
-- Muslim Women and FeminismMonday, March 8 -- 6:30-
9:30 pm
HSC 1A6
With Dr. Jasmine ZineSponsored by McMaster
Muslims for Peace and Justice (MMPJ)Public Talk Feminism 101 --
Are You a Part of That Fringe, Radical Group Called 'Feminists'?Wednesday, March 10 --
6:30-9:30 pm
HSC 1A4
With Dr. Amber DeanSponsored by MMPJ

Vigil: They Will Not
Be ForgottenFriday, March 12 --
1:30-2:30 pm
Mills Plaza
MMPJ invites you to a Vigil to remember those women who have fallen
victim to gender violence.

LondonCelebrating the
Feminist
50th -- "We've Come a Long Way" Saturday, March 6 -- 10:00 am-12:00
noon
Masonville Branch Library, 30 North Centre Road
A celebration to pause and reflect on our experience,
our accomplishments, our strategies, our futures as part of the "second
wave" of the women's movement. Free! Refreshments! All welcome! Co-sponsored by the
London Women's History Project:
"Documenting the
women who improved the lives of London women 1960-2010" Contact: 519-660-4646

Grimsby WomEnchant and
Sister Lune
Concert Monday, March
8
--
7:30-9:30
pm
Trinity United Church, 100 Main Street West
WomEnchant and Sister Lune in concert.
Organized by West Niagara Second Stage Housing and Counseling Inc.:
WNSS is a not for profit organization offering housing and counseling
for abused woman and their children.

Thunder BayCelebrate WomenSunday, March 7 --
1:00-3:00 pm
OPSEU's regional office at 1201 Amber Drive
An opportunity for women in Thunder Bay from all avenues to get
together to share their ideas on how to promote women's issues locally,
provincially and internationally. Organized by: Ontario
Public Service Employees Union-Provincial Women's Committee Region 7

Webcam Presentation
from the United Nations: Beijing Plus Fifteen
Monday, March 8
-- 7:30 pmFrances Morrison Library
Refreshments served
International speakers followed by a local panel and discussionOrganized by: Canadian
Federation of University Women Saskatoon Inc.Cosponsors: Oxfam Canada,
Faculty of Social Work, U. of R, Women’s and Gender Studies, U. of S.,
USSU Women’s Centre, Women’s Studies Research Unit, U. of S.

Weyburn In Praise of Women Art
Exhibition and Gala Art Auction February 8-March
18
Signal Hill Arts Centre, 157 3rd. Street N.E.
Art exhibit displaying works by, for and in praise of women. Gala art
auction on March 18. All proceeds raised for Envision Counseling and
Support Centre.
Organized by: Weyburn & District Labour Council/Envision Counseling
and Support Centre

BRITISH
COLUMBIAPrince
GeorgeAnnual IWD
BreakfastSaturday, March 6 --
9:00 am$15Ramada Hotel downtown With guest speakers.
Tickets
available from the PG and District Labour Council. For tickets and more
information phone 250-981-2654 or 250-301-9713.

Vagina MonologuesFriday, March 12 -- 7:15
pmSaturday, March 13 --
2:15 and 7:15 pmTickets: $10Canfor Theatre, UNBCThe Vagina Monologues is
a play that
was originally written and acted by Eve Ensler of New York City and has
become very popular throughout the world. It includes a number of
monologues that somehow relate to the vagina like love, sex, birth,
orgasm and other topics. PG for 14 plus. Tickets available at Urban
Treasure (Fourth and Quebec,) UNBC Northern Women's Centre, Pride UNBC,
Elizabeth Fry Society and International V-Day Organization. For
information: Kara Steel nugss-womensrep@unbc.ca. or visit
vmpg.ca/facebook
LangleyFirst Annual
International
Women's Day CelebrationThursday, March 4--
6:30- 8:30
pm
Muriel Arnason Library, Langley Township Hall, Fraser River
Presentation Theatre
Performances, poetry, slideshow. A reception will follow. Contact: 604-532-3590 or
visit the Library. SurreyCelebrationFriday, March 5 -- 6:00 pm
- 12:00
pm
Bollywood Banquet Hall #201
- 8166 128th Street
Dinner, Entertainment,
Dance. This is a women only, alcohol free event. $20.00 ($25.00 at the
door) Organized by: India
Mahila
Association

BurnabyIWD BreakfastMonday, March 8 -- 7:30 am- 9:35 am
Metrotown Hilton Hotel, 6083 McKay Avenue
Again this year as we celebrate women's accomplishments and bring
women's issues to the forefront.
Tickets are $30 each, with proceeds going to support Joy's List.Organized by: BC
Federation of Labour